I recently sent them a few questions to see if they had any advice for expectant parents. Here is what they had to say:

1. So tell us about the Lannings.

We are high-school sweethearts, who have been through a lot in both our lives and relationship. We’ve just recently began opening up to the world through YouTube and sharing our experiences to help others.

2. You are at 37 weeks, so by now you’ve learned a few things about pregnancy. What is the #1 tip you could give to parents who are expecting their first child?

Cherish every single moment. Make every single moment a big deal. Make it a grand spectacle. It’ll give you something cool to look back on and will reinforce those memories.

3. Did you do anything special or creative to announce your pregnancy or the gender of your baby?

We actually announced the gender with a super cool video!

4. You’ve been through a few baby showers by now, so what is your best baby shower tip? What is your favorite event or game that anyone could add into their shower?

Keep it intimate and special. Don’t decorate with cheesy blue or pink. Decorate with your baby’s items, like their clothes, stuffed animals. It makes it so much more special. We did a video on our shower to:

5. What is the #1 pregnancy-related product you couldn’t live without?

Coconut oil! I rub it over everything at night. It’s amazing! (NO STRETCH MARKS!) and you can even cook with it!

6. Most of these questions seem to be geared more towards Missy, so we have to get Dad involved. Bryan, becoming a father is an exciting (and stressful) time. What is the #1 tip you would give to guys out there who are going to become a father for the first time?

Don’t worry so much about being a great dad. That will come with time. Worry about being a better husband, because you don’t see many good husbands become crappy dads.

7. What is your favorite food and drink during pregnancy? (Bryan, you can chime in here too.)

CHICKEN GNOCCI SOUP from Olive Garden is amazing. We both crave it. Bryan has sympathy cravings for it. lol. We actually have this phrase with our fans “Peace, love, and chicken gnocchi soup!”

8. Favorite book, tv show, and/or movie to enjoy while you’re expecting?

FRIENDS. It’s a classic. We watch it all the time.

9. Keeping up with a daily blog or vlog isn’t easy. How do you manage to keep up with the daily posts – particularly on days you just don’t feel up to it?

Honestly, daily vlogging is such a huge part of our lives, we don’t even notice it anymore. It’s instinct to pull the camera out and start filming. Bryan can now edit and upload the blog within an hour every night too. There are days we don’t feel like doing it sure, but once we pull out the camera, we start having fun and those feelings instantly go away.

10. This is a difficult question, but one that could be the most helpful to others who share your experience: You guys had 2 miscarriages before this pregnancy. What advice do you have for anyone who goes though such a difficult experience?

Have hope. Like I said before I’m writing to you from our hospital room where we just had our baby boy after 2 losses. Hope is so strong. I remember 7 weeks pregnant, my wife was bawling her eyes out cause she was so scared of what could happen, and now look where we are. If you’re grounded in hope, anything is possible. Understand that what you think could be impossible, is seriously within reach. We were a couple where every bad thing just kept coming, and we finally we were rewarded. Here is a link to the birth vlog.

So, this story does have a happy ending. Turns out that Bryan and Missy were writing the answers to their questions from the hospital. I guess its true what they say – third time’s the charm!

Congratulations to the Lannings and Baby Ollie! And thank you for sharing your story on the Belly Blog.

It might not be convenient to have a computer set up at your baby shower or gender reveal party for guests to join your baby pool online. Because of that, we’re excited to release our free printable game cards! (PDF)  They work just like our printable baby pool template, only they’re individual cards instead of one big spreadsheet. (I think that makes them easier to use at parties, not to mention cuter!)

There are four to a sheet of standard letter paper, so you can print as many copies as you need at home and simply cut along the dotted lines. Try placing the cards near your guest sign-in sheet next to a cute basket to drop them in, or pass them out when it’s time to play other shower games.

Guests can make their predictions about the baby’s gender, birth date and time, weight and length, and hair and eye color just like they would online. Then you just collect the cards and add their predictions to your pool later (more on how to do that in this post).

My own baby shower is coming up at the end of the month, and I’m excited to try these out. I think they’ll be handy for older guests who want to join my pool but aren’t computer-savvy (not to mention those busy friends who keep saying “Oh yeah, I need to do that!”).

If you use them for your shower or gender reveal party, let us know what you think! Just leave a comment here or send us an e-mail.

Download the printable baby shower guessing game cards.

Mollee and her husband, Matt, live in Midlothian, Virginia, and are eagerly awaiting the arrival of their first baby (a girl!) in May 2013. (Check out her baby pool here.) Although she helps pay the bills as a graphic designer, Mollee’s true passion is for making things with her hands. Find more of her recipes, paintings and crafts at molleemade.com.

She set up a baby pool on our website and we sent her a few questions to see if she’d share some of her secrets about pregnancy, motherhood, and maintaining her sanity as a busy working mom.

Jenn and Jayda

1. Who is the “Baby Makin Mama”?

I’m Jennifer, a fairly new mom figuring out my way in the world juggling a career, family, hobbies, and aspirations to be a domestic diva. Despite my name, I don’t make lots of babies, just two so far, but I chose that blog name years before getting pregnant the first time when I decided to write about my journey toward becoming a mother. It’s stuck through the years as I’ve switched my “machine” on and off.

2. You’re expecting your 2nd child on April 1, so you’ve been through all this before. For the rookies out there expecting their first, what is your #1 greatest tip?

Don’t sweat the small stuff. I know nothing seems small the first time around but this time, all those worries about what diapers and shampoo to use, to sleep train or not, home made vs store bought baby food… It wasn’t as big of a deal as I thought. Now my first baby is a little girl and all those things I worried about in the first 6 months or so seem so silly. This time around I’m just planning on not sleeping for a year or so, but enjoying all the fun little moments that go by too fast.

3. Gender reveal parties are all the rage now. Did you do anything special to announce the gender to the world?

I wish! The first time I used an app to make the ultrasound pic all girlie and texted it to family, then announced it on Facebook that way. This time the gender is a surprise so I’m trying to think of a fun way to tell family and friends who don’t come to the hospital. I’m thinking of doing a fun photoshoot when we get home, but who wants to wait that long to share? And chances are someone will spill the beans before I get around to it.

I did make two take-home outfits, one for a boy with suspenders, and a bow tie, and one for a girl with a ruffly bottom and bows. Maybe I’ll share a photo of baby in that outfit. It’s no cake but maybe it’ll be cute.

Handmade onesies by Jennifer

4. You have been through a few baby showers by now, so what is your best baby shower tip? What is your favorite event or game that anyone could add into their shower?

One game I like that’s fun for people who don’t even like games is making the gift opening a game of bingo. Have guests fill out blank bingo cards with what they think mama will get, and cross off their card as she opens gifts. When you get 5 in a row you get BINGO! Winner(s) get a little prize.

5. Most of these questions are geared towards mom, but we don’t want to leave dad out here. What is your husband’s #1 tip for new dads?

“Don’t expect to get any… Sleep.” <— He’s a man of few words.

6. My son is almost 3 and he is exactly what people call a “terrible two”. I hear that girls are a little easier at the toddler stage. Do you feel like that is true, and if your little one turns into a monster, how do you handle the situation?

I’ve always been a little scared of little boys. They seem so destructive and hyper. But when it comes to entertainment boys seem perfectly content playing with sticks. My little girl is definitely dramatic and emotional, at times it’s cute but other times I think she’s just the ultimate drama queen. I think they both have their moments. With her I just try to stay calm and communicate with her. Since she’s so emotional, she’s pretty in-tune with my feelings, so when I’m getting frustrated she usually asks me “mommy are you happy?” and it gives me a chance to tell her how I’m feeling and talk about what we can do so to make both of us feel better.

7. What is your favorite food and drink during pregnancy?

Lofthouse frosted sugar cookies, strawberry Poptarts (without icing), Sonic burgers, hot dogs and limeades. YUM!

8. Favorite book, tv show, and/or movie to enjoy while you are expecting? (If you even have time for these things!)

Last time I felt like I watched nothing but A Baby Story, I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant, and anything else baby related. This time I’ve watched none of that, but I’ve really been enjoying The Bachelor and Desperate Housewives.

9. A lot of people out there are starting blogs and some of them really want to turn it into a fulltime gig. What advice do you have for other bloggers out there?

When it comes to blogging for money, I’d try to be realistic with my expectations. Very few bloggers do very well. Take the time to build up a base and find your focus. I love blogging because it gives me a chance to write and share the things I love most, for fun. It’s also a great journal for myself, and for my children when they get older. It’s not all about them, but rather how I see things I’m going through. My future generations can look back and see what a goofball their great-great-great-great Grandma was. My advice would be to be true to yourself, set goals, and connect with people who are doing what you’d like to do. Reach out to them. A mentor is a great advocate to have. This goes for any aspiration.

10. Like most parents today you’re in super-overdrive: writing for your own blog (www.babymakingmachine.com), writing for BabyCenter, working the “real” job as a news anchor, and raising your daughter. How do you keep up with it all?

Yes, I work full-time as a reporter and anchor at a local news station, blog for fun, and as a freelancer, dabble in photography and videography, and chase around my sweet little girl–But of course she and my husband come first on the list in real life.

I keep up with it all by writing a lot of to-do lists, and tackling tasks as I feel like in the mood to complete them. I get a lot more done faster when I’m feeling inspired to do it, and I’m pretty good on a deadline. Sometimes I have to take a step back from my personal blog to get things done, or learn to say “no” when I really can’t take on an extra project. I’m not the best at balancing, but so far, I’ve been pretty good at juggling.

Thanks for sharing your story and great advice!

Now, on to the baby pool contest details:

Celebrating the arrival of Baby Borget #2 wouldn’t be complete without a baby guessing game. As part of their game, we want to toss in a prize to make it more fun for everyone. So we’re giving a $50 Visa Gift Card to whoever comes in #1 in the pool

The rules:

1. Guesses will be accepted until March 18, 2013, or until Jenn goes into labor – whichever happens first.
2. All are welcome to guess, but only residents of the continental United States are eligible for the prize.
3. Winners will be determined by the point system outlined here.
4. If the winner is someone who didn’t set up an account, they MUST have their email entered in the system so we can contact them via email. If we can’t reach the winner for this (or any other reason) we will go to the 2nd place winner and so on until we reach a winner. (So, sign up on the website and enter a valid email address to make sure we can reach you.)
5. Remember, guesses left in the comments on this page do NOT count towards the prize. You must sign up at whatsinmybelly.com and Join the official baby pool (click Join at the top right of the pool page.).

Click here to join in the Baby Makin’ Machine Baby Guessing Game!

Like free stuff?

After you enter Jenn’s baby pool, be sure to enter to win Burt’s Bees Belly Butter over here. (You have until Monday, Feb. 18, 2013 at 11PM EST on this one.)

Want to join other sweepstakes?

Check out sweepstakes advantage to join other online sweepstakes.

We’ve received quite a few e-mails from people asking how friends without e-mail or Facebook can participate in their baby guessing game. I find it hard to believe that people don’t have e-mail, but you never know. It’s also pretty common that people just don’t want to sign up on another website just to guess when your baby will be born. So, we finally got around to adding this feature to the website. Starting today,  pool administrators can now add predictions for their friends and family. You can still invite everyone to enter on their own, but for those who can’t (or for those who are just too lazy) just get their prediction and add it for them!

Add predictions to your baby pool without asking friends and family to sign up

You could print out our baby pool template and pass it around at your baby shower. No one needs to sign up, just collect the form and add the predictions to your pool through the Pool Settings tab.

Here’s how:

1. Login to your account and go to the pool you want to add predictions to.
2. Click the “Pool Settings” tab.
3. On the submenu, click the “Add Predictions” tab.
4. Click the purple button that says “Click here to enter a prediction for someone else!”
5. Enter their prediction info. (You must enter their first name, last name, gender prediction, relation to the baby, weight prediction, length prediction, hair color prediction and eye color prediction.)
6. Click save and you’ll be taken to the All Predictions page and see the new prediction.

You can add as many predictions as you want, just repeat the steps above for each new guess.

Keep Asking People to Sign-Up to Get the Full Experience

I’m sure there will always be people who don’t want to sign-up on another website. But, I also want to remind everyone that there are definite benefits to having an account on the website and entering your own predictions:

1. Get an email notification when the baby is born, so you can come back and see who won the baby pool.
2. Leave a personal note for the family and friends on the message stream.
3. Get updates on the pregnancy if the parents are posting messages to the pool.
4. If you have an account, you can keep a list of all the pools you participated in on the My Pools page.
5. A future update will allow everyone to change their predictions on their own (by sacrificing some points from their final score).

In other words, this feature will make it easier for everyone to participate, with or without email or Facebook, but you should still encourage people to sign up and enter their own predictions. It just makes it more fun!

Having Trouble?

We’ve tested this out and it’s working, but we have a small staff of 2 people, so it’s likely some things might not work properly. If you have trouble with this feature (or anything else on the website), please let us know: help@whatsinmybelly.com

On top of running their blog, raising their son Will, and being a professional photographer, Katie is expecting baby #2 in early November. We thought this would be  the perfect opportunity to start our Expectant Parents Spotlight. At WhatsInMyBelly.com, we want to feature Expectant Parents who are taking advantage of every day and doing great things – all while growing their family. If you or someone you know would be a good Featured Expectant Parent, shoot me an email – info@whatsinmybelly.com.

As part of our first featured parents, we asked The Bowers a few questions about pregnancy, parenting and life in general. Here is what they said:

1. So, tell us about the Bowers. Who are you guys in a nutshell?

We are just average run-of-the-mill folks that are like everyone else out there – working hard and playing hard   We actually met on a blind date and it was the perfect unexpected beginning to a life full of surprises.  I think if you had to describe us to perfect strangers, I would say that Jeremy works in sales and I am a stay-at-home mom who plays photographer who also blogs…we both have amazing families and hope to teach our kids to love God, their country, their family and others.  And 80′s music

2. You already have one son, Will, so you have been through pregnancy and early parenthood. What is the #1 best tip you could give to parents who are expecting their first child?

“This too shall pass.”  It works both ways – the bad stuff (like the sleep deprivation, the morning sickness, the cholic) eventually it will pass.  But so will the good stuff – the sleepy baby bubbles, the slow crawling, the fat rolls on fat rolls…it all flies by so it’s just the perfect advise to cherish each moment.

3. Did you do anything special or creative to announce pregnancy 1 and 2?

I told Jeremy about our first with a slideshow. We surprised Jeremy’s dad & stepmom with a couple Gramps & Grammy t-shirts.  I videotaped our #2 announcement just so I could remember his face.  We tried for a longer time with our second so it was definitely more exciting. [Katie announced her pregnancy on her blog in a this heart-felt video. And more about their pregnancy announcements here.]

4. You have been through a few baby showers by now, so what is your best baby shower tip? What is your favorite event or game that anyone could add into their shower?

Best baby shower tip?  Probably to not register for a single toy.  Toys will inevitably become part of your house…and they are cheap.  Diapers on the other hand…notsomuch.

As for my favorite baby shower event – I love the idea of birthday cards.  Each person gets a blank notecard and draws a number between 1-18.  They then write a note for the baby to open on that birthday.  It’s such a special thing to see what family & friends were wishing you before you were even born.

5. Most of these questions seem to be geared more towards Katie, so we have to get Dad involved here. Jeremy, becoming a father is an exciting (and stressful) time. What is the #1 tip you would give to guys out there who are going to become a father for the first time?

Be willing to help without being asked.  Do things you wouldn’t normally do, just to help out around the house.  If you have an older child, be aware that you might need to spend a lot more time at first caring for them when the newborn arrives.  Arrange for help for your wife if she normally does cleaning, cooking and laundry.  And frequently remind her that she is beautiful and that she is doing a great job.

6. My son is 2 1/2 and like everyone says about 2 year-olds, he has his “Terrible 2″ moments. So, I have to ask all parents this: What is your favorite way to get your toddler to burn off some energy? And, when he does act out, how do you handle it?

We love cousin time, play dates and swimming at Nana’s house to burn off energy!  And Will lives up to his name – he is very willful.  So when he acts out, internally we question everything we know about discipline and want to curl up in the fetal position and quit….but we know that he responds best to consistency and firm boundaries.  That means that time outs happen in the Lowe’s plumbing aisle, Lightening McQueen is a very very special treat and Jer and I have daily talks about what we did right, did wrong and how we can improve.

7. What is your favorite food and drink during pregnancy? (Jeremy, you can chime in here too.)

Katie

First pregnancy: soft jumbo pretzels & hot vanilla chamomile tea.  This pregnancy: cold green grapes, donuts & chocolate milk.

Jeremy

Pizza & Dr. Pepper

8. Favorite book, tv show, and/or movie to enjoy while you are expecting? (If you even have time for these things!)

We watched everything with our first pregnancy…we had time.  Now?  Does Jungle Book 2 count?

9. Ok, last question. One look at the Bower Power Blog, and you guys seem like Super Parents. (Seriously, are there really only 2 of you?) You are running your blog, taking photographs, working on your house, raising one child while expecting another, and I am guessing there is even more going on. How do you do it???

We don’t.  A lot of stuff gets pushed to the back burner.  We prioritize family time and project time above personal activity time, date nights and cleaning the house.  And sleep doesn’t happen a whole lot either.  Our parents are extremely hardworking and they set amazing examples of how to put in sweat equity and invest in family.  From the outside, it may look like we are Super Parents but in reality, we are only super at two things - keeping our head barely above water and loving our boy

Great answers and great advice! I don’t know about you, but I find the Bowers very inspirational.

Now, on to the baby pool contest details:

Celebrating the arrival of Baby Bower #2 wouldn’t be complete without a baby pool. As part of this pool, we’re tossing in some prize money! This pool is open to anyone, so go make your prediction!  (Sorry, prizes will only be sent to those in the continental United States):

• 1st place (highest total points): $100 Visa Gift Card
• 2nd place: $50 Visa Gift Card
• 3rd place: $25 Visa Gift Card
• Last place (lowest total points): Surprise Gift Bag

The rules:

1. Guesses will be accepted through October 29, 2012 October 31, 2012 or until Katie goes into labor – whichever happens first.
2. All are welcome to take a guess, but only residents of the continental United States are eligible for prizes.
3. Winners will be determined by the point system outlined here.

Click here to join in the Bower Power Baby #2 Pool!

Provide for the Baby’s Future Education

If you’re putting some real cash into the baby pool, why not split the pot with the baby? I have good friends expecting a baby, so I secretly started a baby pool for them. Everyone who is participating is asked to chip in at least $10. The winner of the pool takes half the pot and the other half will go into a savings bond in the baby’s name, or it will go to the parents to start out their Virginia 529 plan for the baby’s school savings. What better way to start saving for college?

Make it Part of the Baby Shower

With WhatsInMyBelly.com, it’s easy to integrate your baby pool into the baby shower. After you create your pool, look under the Share tab of your pool page, then click on Share on Paper, and you’ll find an option to print out cards to hand out to your guests at the party. Or, simply pass around a laptop or iPad and let people join your pool on the spot. It’s a fun way to keep involved through the birth of your new addition.

Add Fun “Thank You” Prizes

When you’re expecting a baby, many expecting parents get tons of gifts at multiple baby showers. How do you say “Thank you” to all your friends and family for the outpouring of love? You’d go broke trying to buy everyone a nice gift, so why not make a game of the thanks? For everyone who attends your baby shower, give them a pick in your pool, and offer up one nice gift to the winner. Prizes that everyone loves could be as simple as a restaurant gift card. Be creative and have fun with it. With out first child’s baby pool we made buttons reading “I am the Baby Whisperer” to the top 3 participants. With our second child we gave the person who finished last in the pool a gag gift. I guess we’d call him “The Baby Screamer?” (That one goes out to Sherry.)

So, how do we get that excited surprise for all our friends and family? Sure you could just get on the phone and start calling everyone or do the ever-popular post to Facebook, but we know you can do better. Here are the top 10 ways to reveal your child’s gender:

1. Cakes, Cupcakes & Cookies… yum!

© SugarDerby

Throwing a gender reveal party is a common way to get everyone together and tell them all at once, but once you have them there, don’t just stand on a table and tell them – take it a step further. Bake a cake and add blue or pink food coloring to the batter. Ice it with white icing or some other neutral color. Once you slice into the cake, everyone will know.

You could also do the same thing with cupcakes – and only change the color of one cupcake. The person who finds the pink or blue cupcake gets to make the announcement! You could also have a prize for the “winner”.

Like cookies? Try this cool chocolate chip cookie idea.

2. Gender Piñata

Similar to the cake idea, you could also buy a baby themed piñata for your gender reveal party and fill it completely with blue or pink goodies.

3. Balloons

Even without a large party, you could reveal the gender to a small group with balloons in various ways. Get black balloons (commonly used for the Over the Hill parties), fill them with helium and pink or blue confetti. Let kids or a special guest pop them for an explosive reveal. If you are having a large party, give everyone a balloon and pop them all after a big count-down.

If you’re not into such a loud scene take pink or blue balloons, fill them with helium and wrap up in a package for one special person to open.

4. Gender Reveal Scratch Off Tickets

If you’re comfortable making your own cards, you can buy scratch off paint online. Make cards that can be given out at a party or a card that can be mailed to family. When they scratch off the area painted over with the scratch-off paint, the gender is revealed!

5. Big Brother/Sister Announcement

So you already have at least one child? Get the Big-brother-to-be in on the excitement. You could take a photo of them in a shirt or holding up a card with the news. Send the photo out by email, put it in a real card to mail out, or simply post it to Facebook.

6. Take a Unique Photo

© Kimberly G Photography

Everyone loves photographs and this is a moment you’ll want to remember. Why not take a photo that announces the gender in a creative way? Like the photo above you could blow some boy or girl confetti into the camera. Or, grab your partner and hold up a sign together. Do you have the board game Scrabble? Hold the letters spelling “boy” or “girl” in your hand near your belly.

7. The Subtle Reveal

If you’re having friends or family over, stack some blocks spelling out “boy” or “girl” and put it in a place you know it will be seen… then wait for them to notice. Or, if you have a wall clock or something else round on the wall, turn it into a male or female symbol with some blue or pink construction paper.

8. Have a Gender Reveal Party

So we’ve listed quite a few different ideas with plenty of variations. Why not make it a big event and throw a Team Blue/Pink party? Have your friends and family come visit and wear pink or blue to show their guess.

Got other ideas that aren’t listed here? Leave it in the comments and we’ll add it to our list.